


Heart Dress and Starry Veil

by Diary



Series: Tarly Flowers [2]
Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Awkward Conversations, Bechdel Test Pass, Disturbing Themes, Domestic, Established Gilly/Samwell Tarly, Established Relationship, F/M, Family, Friendship/Love, Gentleman Samwell Tarly, Gilly/Samwell Tarly Get Married, Handfasting, Jon Snow & Samwell Tarly Friendship, Jon Snow is a Stark, Late Night Conversations, Modern Westeros, POV Female Character, POV Gilly, Past Child Abuse, Past Incest, Past Rape/Non-con, Romance, Sex Talk, Sharing a Bed, Wedding Fluff, Wedding Planning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-16
Updated: 2016-06-16
Packaged: 2018-07-15 09:45:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7217491
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Diary/pseuds/Diary
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gilly finds the perfect wedding dress but doesn't plan to wear it. Complete.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Heart Dress and Starry Veil

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Game of Thrones.

Gilly’s carrying Sammy through the mall when she sees a dress on display and finds herself staring.

Shifting him in her arms, she tentatively moves closer.

Her father- there are so many different religions, and she has no idea which one might describe what he was. He called himself godly, taught her the gods wanted her to do this and not do that, and punished her when she fell short.

When they- they were never married. Sam doesn’t really say much of anything when she slips, but Jon Snow is always quick to correct her, even when Sam gets annoyed with him for it.

‘Your father was a sick bastard who did horrible things to you. He wasn’t your husband. You’ve never been married. There’s nothing wrong with baby Sam. He can’t help who his father is, and trust me, being born outside of marriage doesn’t say anything one way or another about the mother besides the fact she wasn’t married,’ are all things he’s told her at different times.

She wore a blue dress with flowers in her hair, and Craster told her blue meant virginity and purity.

Since Jon and Sam rescued her, she’s worn blue since without ever really thinking about it, but now, she has a ring on her left ring finger, and she realises she’s going to need to pick out a dress for her real wedding.

Sam isn’t religious, but Jon wants them to be married in the godswood of his father’s place, and Jon’s stepmother likes Sam well enough she hasn’t objected. Gilly’s always found it to be a beautiful, peaceful place, and Sam’s said, as long as she, Sammy, and his best man are all three happy, he doesn’t much care about the how and where. What is important to him is they marry on his mother’s birthday.

Looking at this dress, she can imagine herself in it. It’s shimmering blue, stops a few inches above the ankle, and the top- it wouldn’t show any hint of her breasts, but it would expose the skin over her heart. She can imagine herself wearing it with white slippers and stars in her hair.

She’s not sure how exactly she’d even get stars. She just remembers watching TV once with her two Sams and seeing a woman who had twinkling stars woven throughout her hair.

It could have been diamonds or other clear jewels (if so, she wouldn’t want them), or it might have been simple barrettes (she could order those online without Sam’s help). 

The realisation she can’t wear this dress makes her stomach hurt.

Whatever her father was, not everything he taught her was wrong. He taught her not to lie, steal, or be idle. Part of her baking skills are due to her years of effort in making his food.

To her, a blue wedding dress is always going to mean virginity and purity.

The first time she and Sam kissed, she told him she couldn’t consummate the relationship unless they got married, and he’s never made her feel wrong or bad. She knows them getting married isn’t because of this. He loves her and wants to spend the rest of his life with her the same way she does him.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with Sammy, but he is clear proof she isn’t a virgin.

“Do you need a price-check?”

Jumping, she looks over.

A teenage girl with a nametag reading 'Myrcella' gives her a kind smile. “Sorry. I noticed you looking-” She gestures to the dress.

“Oh, no,” Gilly replies. “Um, thank you. Could- would it be alright if I took a picture?”

“I don’t see why not,” Myrcella answers. “Would you like me to hold him?”

“Yes, thank you."

Sammy mumbles when she hands him over but stays asleep.

“I think we have this one in different colours and sizes,” Myrcella continues. “But this one looks like it might be your size, and of course, the colour would go awesome with your eyes. I don’t know why some people seem to think that brown-eyed people can’t pull off blue. My boyfriend’s sister has this gorgeous blue sundress, and she’s just the cutest little girl imaginable when she wears it.”

Gilly quickly snaps a picture with her phone. “Um, thank you, but I won’t be buying it.”

Myrcella gives a small shrug. “If you want, you can take more than one. One of my girlfriends is always taking pictures of everything on this big old-fashioned digital camera, and people are always yelling at her. I’m like, she’s not hurting anything, just let her take the picture. Well, I guess when she gets tons of whatever awards photographers get, she’ll show them.”

Smiling, Gilly takes a few more shots from different angles. “Thank you very much."

Handing Sammy back, Myrcella nods. “No problem. Your son’s a little cutie pie.”

Before Gilly can respond, Myrcella is moving towards a different shopper.

…

After the shopping, Gilly takes Sammy to Jon’s house. Sansa, his sister and an event coordinator, is staying with him while helping with the wedding preparations, and Sammy excitedly waves when she opens the door to greet them.

“Hi, Aunt Sansa." He wiggles out of Gilly’s arm. “I really glad you’re going to help Mummy and Papa Sam get the wedding ready.”

She and Sam smile at one another, and he kisses her. “Jon’s getting the stuff?”

She nods. “Remember, you can’t-”

“I know, I can’t see anything involving the wedding. I could understand not seeing you in your dress, but everything else-”

Over by the window, Sansa interjects, “You don’t have to understand, you just have to obey. My brother’s coming. Take Sammy and go, now.”

Kissing her again, Sam shakes his head and holds his hand out for Sammy. “Come on, little one. Let’s let Mummy and Aunt Sansa plan out the wedding. Uncle Jon will be with us shortly.”

“We can look at our clothes,” Sammy says. “I’m wearing the same as you, but Uncle Jon isn’t, because, if he did, people who didn’t know us and looked in pictures might not know who was marrying Mummy. But he and the other officers are wearing the same thing they wear at special police oc-oc- parties and stuff.”

“It’s ‘occasions’,” Sam gently tells him.

They disappear fully just before Sansa opens the door for Jon.

Once everything is in, Gilly finds herself alone with Sansa.

She likes Jon’s sister, she just isn’t exactly- comfortable around her.

Sansa always knows what to say and do, and she’s almost as smart as Sam is. Gilly often feels almost like the dirty, ignorant girl she once was in comparison to the beautifully dressed, pretty, poised woman.

“I thought we could talk about dresses tonight,” Sansa says. “If everything works out, we can start shopping after the cake tasting, but it might be helpful to have some idea of what we want to look for. Oh, do you want a dress? I’m relatively sure, if Arya ever gets married, it’ll be in her favourite pair of jeans and, if we’re very lucky, a nice, dressy top.”

“Yes, I want a dress,” Gilly answers. “But I was thinking- I have a black dress at home.” On her phone, she pulls the picture up. “Sam and I have been talking about me maybe wearing some of his mum’s jewellery. It’s mostly emeralds and onyxes.”

“That would be beautiful. Have you tried it on recently? If it needs some alterations, I can probably do it myself.”

“I tried it on last night. It fits just right.”

“That’s wonderful. Oh, I’m sorry. Where are my manners? Please, sit down. Would you like something to eat or drink?”

…

Once they’ve sat down with apple juice for Gilly and sparkling water for Sansa, Sansa asks, “What jewellery specifically were you thinking of wearing? I’m not sure I’ve ever seen the full collection of Mrs Tarly’s collection. Shoes? Are you going to want a veil?”

“A veil,” she repeats.

Suddenly, she sees herself in the blue dress with a flowing, netted blue veil attached to the stars.

“No,” she answers. “I was thinking a plait of some kind would be nice. And I’m going to wear my black ballet shoes.”

She’d considered wearing a pair of her kitten heels, but she still finds them uncomfortable and is terrified she might stumble or trip during the wedding.

“A plait sounds lovely.” Sansa reaches out. “May I?”

Gilly nods, and Sansa starts arranging her hair. “Were you thinking of one or more? Do you want your hair up or down?”

“A pineapple, that’s what Sam calls it, but where the plait is more over than under?”

“I think I understand."

Before Gilly knows it, she’s looking in a compact mirror, and Sansa is holding a bigger mirror behind her.

“That’s it,” she agrees.

Then, unwittingly, she remembers her hair was down when she- According to Craster, this was also a sign of virginity and purity.

“Are you okay? Did I say or do something to-”

“No, I’m sorry,” she quickly says. “I- it was just a bad memory sneaking up on me. You said you were going to show me pictures of your wedding?”

Sansa seems unsure, but they both quickly get lost in happy stories, pictures, and videos of Sansa’s wedding.

…

When it’s time for lunch, Sammy says, “Mummy, I want to show Uncle Jon the picture of Grandma Tarly’s dangly earrings.”

She hands her phone over. “Here you go, sweet one.” To Sansa, she says, “I won’t be wearing them. They’d almost reach my shoulders.”

“I remember when I was in secondary school, it was the fashion to-”

“This is a pretty dress,” Jon interrupts.

Glancing over, she feels her stomach clench at the sight of the blue dress. “Yeah, it’s one I saw while I was shopping. I just thought it looked nice.”

Hearing Sam returning from the bathroom, she reaches over and quickly exits the picture. “What were you saying,” she asks Sansa.

…

Due to their schedules, she and Sam usually sleep during the afternoon, and she takes Sammy to Hot Pie and Gilly Flowers’s Bakery with her during the night. Sam works the night shift at the City Guard station with Jon, and Hot Pie takes the day shift at the bakery.

She and Sam have talked about one or both of them switching to the day shift when Sammy gets a little older, but right now, he’s doing well in school and often plays with the neighbourhood children afterwards.

Now, she curls underneath his arm. “Sam?”

After they got engaged, she and Sammy moved in with Sam, and he’d help fix up rooms for both of them, but somehow, she’d almost immediately ended up sleeping in his bed every night.

When Sammy was a little younger, he often slept with her.

She can’t remember ever being so little and just sleeping in her father’s bed. She was about twelve or thirteen, maybe a little younger or older, when- his attentions started, and sometimes, afterwards, she’d sleep in his bed, but usually, she’d go back to the basement.

Even knowing better, part of her had been concerned her and Sam in bed together would end up with consummation, but they rarely did more than share soft, short kisses, and the one time things had started to build up, it had been him who’d stopped them.

Immediately, he turns and tightens his hold. “Is everything alright?”

“Yes,” she assures him. “I was just wondering- Are you going to be disappointed that I’m not a virgin?”

“What? No, of course not,” is his confused reply. “Are you going to be that I’m not?”

“Of course not,” she echoes. “I know that a lot of people do that, and I don’t think it’s bad, as long as no one’s being hurt. It’s just- I just-”

“Hey." His hand runs up and down her back, and he kisses her forehead.

Snuggling closer, she breathes in the smell of him and concentrates on the soothing feeling of his hand.

“It doesn’t matter to me why. Well, I mean it does, you know that your thoughts and feelings always matter to me, but sex isn’t why I want to marry you. I love you. You and Sammy both. If you never wanted to have sex, that’d be fine. There might be times I spent longer than normal in the shower, but it’d be fine. I want to marry you and be a proper family with you and Sammy. If you’d made the choice and had sex in the past, with someone else, not like what Craster did, I wouldn’t care. And I don’t mind waiting until after the wedding.”

She wiggles so she can reach up and kiss him. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” He shifts. “You know, I consider myself the lucky one. I never imagined such a beautiful, kind, intelligent girl would ever want someone like me.”

Warmth spreads throughout her, and she tells him, “We’re both lucky. And if I weren’t here, I can’t imagine there wouldn’t be someone who wanted you just like I do. It might have just taken some time, since you hardly left you lab at night and usually stayed at home during the day, but you and she would have found each other.”

“I can’t imagine anyone but you,” he says.

Part of her has always thought some gods or god out there meant for her and Sam to be together and was just waiting for the best time, if not way, to bring them together.

Smiling, she repeats, “I love you.”

“I love you,” he responds.

…

In the morning, she takes Sansa to the bakery. During the drive, she explains, “I planned to just make some chocolate biscuits and a few sugar ones for the boyfriend of one of the officer’s, he’s allergic to chocolate, but Hot Pie said we were having a proper cake.”

At Sansa’s look, she hurriedly explains, “Hot Pie’s as sweet as can be. It’s just, when he thinks something’s important, he doesn’t give up.”

Everyone but Sammy has learned this from personal experience.

Shrugging, Sansa smiles. “You’ve met most of my family.”

When they arrive, Gilly calls out, “We’re here!”

They sit down, and Hot Pie soon appears.

“Where are the boys?”

“Sam and Jon are taking Sammy for their suit fittings,” she reminds him.

“But you were supposed to both come! I’m pretty sure you’re going to pick the strawberry honey almond cake, but I need to know for sure. It’s best they sit for a couple of days. You know this!”

“Hello,” Sansa interjects. She offers her hand. “I’m Sansa Stark, Jon’s sister, and wedding planner for Gilly and Sam.”

“Oh.” Hot Pie blinks. He gives his full name, “but I’ve been Hot Pie since I was ten. You’ll be test tasting with Gilly?”

“Probably not very much. Aside from lemon cakes, I’ve never really been one for sweets.”

Gilly isn’t going to be surprised when they leave with a box of yesterday’s lemon cakes and a bag of fresh ones, but she imagines Sansa likely will be.

…

“I’m not sure he didn’t use black magic,” Sansa insists.

Trying not to laugh, Gilly hands her a zippered plastic bag from Jon’s cabinent. “The stuff is in the guestroom?”

Finishing putting up the lemon cakes, Sansa nods. “Although, that cake you picked out was delicious.”

“The new one really will be even better after it’s been given a few days,” Gilly says.

In the bedroom, Gilly sees clothes hanging all around the room and draped over all the furniture.

“Do you think you could do me a favour? I bought a dress for one of my nieces, she’s about your size, but I’m not sure if it’s right for her. Could you try it on? Maybe seeing it on someone will help me visualise how it’ll look on her.”

Gilly nods.

“Thank you.” Sansa smiles, reaches over, and produces a blue dress from somewhere on the bed. “Of course, she’s a lot like Arya, but I think every girl should have, at least, one pretty dress, just in case they ever decide they want it.”

“That’s a nice thought,” Gilly comments.

“Speaking of dresses- I saw how you looked at that one on your phone yesterday. If money’s tight with you and Sam, I can still help you have a magical wedding. I can’t promise an extravagant one, but it’s not bragging to say that I’m very good at making people with budgets happy. I can usually give them exactly what they want.”

Finishing changing, Gilly tries to think of what the best response would be.

Maybe, in a different time or place, there’s a her and Sam where she wasn’t almost completely isolated from other people for nineteen years and her father didn’t also call himself her husband and she’s not going to have to one day explain to Sammy the risks he and any girl he loves might be subjecting their children to if they decide to have children. Even if he finds a boy instead, she’ll still have to explain why he might not want to inseminate a woman to give him and his partner a child.

Maybe, in this time or place, Sammy would fully be the product of her and Sam. She’d be a virgin on her wedding night, or at least, she wouldn’t feel guilty for not being one.

She can’t feel too guilty, though. Whatever her conflicted feelings towards Craster, she’ll always consider Samwell William Flowers the best thing to ever happen to her. Her son gave her the strength and determination to get help and free herself, he’s taught her to love in ways she never thought possible, and the thought of not having him- everything she suffered those nineteen years were worth it for him to be conceived and born.

“It was blue,” she finally says. “Blue- when it comes to weddings, blue means virginity and purity to me. Obviously, I can’t wear it.”

Sansa gets a look on her face Gilly isn’t sure what to make of, and before Gilly can ask, Sansa reaches over and gently tugs her in front of the mirror hanging on the door.

“I don’t know how much you know, but I was once involved with two horrible men.”

Nodding, Gilly tentatively offers, “Joffrey Baratheon and Ramsay Bolton. Jon and even Sam have never told me much. The first was your boyfriend in college, and Ramsay- he was your ex-husband.”

She knows most of the City Watch thinks Jon killed him, but she’s never concerned herself with the question. If she ever wanted to make a cruel enemy, all she’d have to do is hurt either one of his siblings or Sam. As long as she never does either, she knows he’d give his life for her, if necessary, and whatever he felt towards her, no one would ever dare hurt Sammy on his watch.

In the mirror, Sansa sadly nods. “Joffrey was good at pretending. For a while. Ramsay- in some ways, he was even better. After my family got me away, for a long time, even though I outwardly healed and put on a happy face- part of me felt worthless. Dirty. I was sure no one would ever want me.”

“Then, I met Margaery. It probably isn’t completely healthy how I only started feeling whole again when we started dating. I pray to the gods Lori never needs another person to make her complete. I hope we can raise her so she doesn’t. But I’m happier with them than I ever have been.”

Turning, Gilly hugs her. “I’m glad. I know how wonderful your love is.”

Nodding, Sansa bites her lip. “In my family, the women have always worn white. It symbolises purity, at least. Over the last few generations, there have been ones who made no secret they didn’t fit the virgin label who wore it. When Margaery and I decided to get married- my parents were trying to be supportive, but it was no secret how they felt. And with Ramsay and Joffrey in my past, I didn’t feel I had any right to wear it.”

Gently, Sansa turns her back around. “But in the end, my father had Arya force me into a white dress, and he had me stand in front of a mirror. I’m going to say what he said to me, ‘Look at yourself. If this isn’t you, if you don’t see yourself, then, pick something different. But if you can see someone beautiful and proud and good, then, wear this. Whatever anyone else thinks, even me and your mother, doesn’t matter. This is about what will make you the most happy on one of the most important days of your life.’”

“So, look at yourself, Gilly. If this is about your father or someone else, don’t let it be. You love Sam, and he loves you. Your son is going to watch you marry his father. In your heart, how do you look when you and Sam unite under the gods and law?”

Gilly looks, and she sees herself in the godswood wearing the shimmering, blue heart dress with stars and a blue veil in her loose hair. She sees Sam in his black suit (he’d wanted a tuxedo, but Jon had made it clear there would be no bowties on any man present at the wedding, especially the groom) with Sammy standing nearby. She sees Jon in his uniform, the same uniform he had on when he first came to save her and brought Sam down to her.

“A blue dress,” she realises aloud. “I’m not sure if the stars and veil are possible, though.”

Sansa gives her a puzzled look, and she explains. “Do you know where we might be able to find a proper blue dress? I imagine the one at the mall’s already be sold.”

“Well,” Sansa says. She goes over to the closet and takes over a hangar with a white covering hanging over it. Unzipping it, she says, “Yes, yes, it has, but I kept the recipe and haven’t taken off the tag.”

Gilly gasps.  

If it weren’t for her being afraid she might hurt the dress, she’d hug Sansa.

“I saw how you looked at it,” Sansa softly repeats. “Now, why don’t you try it on so we can see if we need to do any alterations? Then, we’ll see about finding you that veil and the stars.”

…

When she and Sam are alone, she blurts out, “You’re not seeing the dress. I- found a different one. Sansa was very helpful. But-” She hesitates.

He sits down, takes her hand, and gives her a soft smile.

“I don’t think most of your mother’s jewellery will go with it. Those onyx earrings, they will, but that’s all.”

“That’s fine,” he says. “Gilly, I just want you to be happy. All I really want is to marry you. Aside from that, it’d be preferable if we did it on my mother's birthday, but even that isn’t important, not really. What’s important is you, me, and Sammy.”

Scooting over, she sighs when he wraps his arm around her. “You once told me you spent hours planning your wedding. And now, everything is good as long as it makes me happy.”

“I was a lonely teenager,” he says. “But more than that, I had the option to that sort of thing, at least, by myself. You didn’t. You- everything with you and Craster was about him. As long as you’re happy and feel safe, everything is good,” he insists.

“Aren’t you scared at all?”

“Terrified,” he admits.

“Really?” She looks up at his face.

He nods. “Really. Besides being terrified I’ll do something to muck the wedding, I- there are plenty of books on how to be a husband, trust me, I’m almost done reading them all, or at least, the ones Jon couldn’t stop me from getting, and I know how to get more, but it’s the sort of thing a person, to a certain extent, has to figure out themselves, isn’t it? My biggest example was my father, and if I ever come close to that, Jon knows what to do.”

“Don’t joke like that,” she orders.

The fact his face makes it clear he’s not joking hurts.

“So, there’s that,” he continues. “Then, there’s being a father to Sammy. Just because I’ve been there- for a long time, I was there as your friend and a sort of uncle. And what if it turns out I’m not the best person for you, and you end up bumping into them after the wedding?”

Frowning, she stares into his eyes and shakes her head. “You know that you’re the best person for me, and you’ve said I’m the best for you.”

“You are,” he says. “I’ve known that for a long time.”

“I’m worried, too,” she tells him. “I always worry about what kind of mum I’m being to Sammy, but being a wife to you is going to be so different from what I was to my father. But I’ve known for a long time, too, that you’re the best person for me.”

“Let’s just worry about being us, yeah?” He suggests. “As long as we get married, that’s the most important, and when there are problems, when we aren’t sure how to handle things, we’ll just remember we love each other and always be honest with each other.”

“That sounds good." Pressing closer against him, she says, “We should do something really nice for Sansa. It’s a shame Margaery and Lori couldn’t be here.”

“Yes, it is. What do you think we might do?”

She considers the question.

…

The night before the wedding, she and Sammy go to the station the way they do every night, and Jon immediately hurries over. “You’re-”

“You said nine,” she reminds him. “It’s not nine, yet.”

He looks at his watch. “You two have ten minutes. No more. If you aren’t out and gone by then, I’m dragging this one,” he touches Sammy’s head, “to a cell and throwing away the key.”

“No,” Sammy protests.

Leading them over to the lab, Jon insists, “Yes, I will. And your mummy and Papa Sam will have to sell the bakery and all their books to pay for you back.”

“You can’t arrest kids under seven. And Hot Pie would just give Mummy the money without her having to sell her part, and most of the books are free, but even the ones that aren’t, most of them are e-books, and they can’t really be sold by people who buy them.”

“Well, I’ll still do it,” Jon declares.

“I can squeeze through the bars, Uncle Jon. You've saw- seen me do it."

They get to Sam’s office, and Jon tells her, “I’m starting to get the sinking suspicion your son doesn’t fear me and respect my authority.”

Giggling, Sammy hugs his leg.

…

When Sammy’s goes the bathroom, Gilly sits with Jon.

“Nervous," he asks.

“A little, but surprisingly, I’m mostly calm,” she answers.

He nods. “I’m really glad he found you.”

“You found me. You try to wave it off, but if it weren’t for you, me and Sammy wouldn’t be here today. I’ll always love you for that, Jon Stark.”

Smiling, he says, “And I’ll always love you, too.”

Reaching over, she squeezes his hand. “I know you don’t feel it, sometimes, but when it comes to your family- just because Mrs Stark doesn’t like you, that doesn’t mean you don’t belong. It’s easy to see you in Arya and your little brothers, but recently, I saw it in Sansa, too. Not having ‘Tully’ doesn’t make you any less their brother or them your brothers and sisters.”

A soft, almost hurt look crosses his face, and hoarsely, he says, “Thank you.”

She nods.

…

Sammy’s soft hand leads her to the heart tree, and she waits in front of the officiant.

Sam appears, and she’s struck by the realisation, soon, she’ll be able to fully touch the handsome man coming towards her. Jon leads him to the heart tree, places his (Sam’s) hand in hers, kisses her cheek, and picks up Sammy.    

Taking the scarf from the officiant, Sammy carefully ties her hand and Sam’s together. When he’s done, she looks at Sam fully and sees he’s given her a teary look she can’t describe as anything over than awestruck.     

Wiping at her own tears, she automatically moves forward to kiss him, but Jon’s free arm shoots out in between them. Quietly, he orders, “Not yet.”

There’s gentle laughter, and she smiles at Sam.

Looking slightly embarrassed, he still gives her a soft, beautiful smile full of love.

 _This is my wedding day_ , she realises. _I’m about to be married_.

She briefly looks down, sees her blue dress, feels the stars and veil moving along with her head, touches her heart with her free hand, and looks back up.

She’s about to be married.

No one objects when the officiant gives the opportunity.

“Gilly Flowers, do you take Samwell Tarly to be your husband?”

“Yes,” she answers. Taking the ring from Sammy, she slides it onto Sam’s left ring finger. “I take the father of our son to be my husband. Sam, I promise to love you for richer or poorer, in health or sickness, and I promise to love and cherish you for as long as I live. You were kind to a stranger, and since we became friends, you’ve shown me and Sammy love I never thought possible. After Sammy being born, the happiest day of my life was you asking me to marry you. This will be an even happier day than that.”

She’s sure, if it weren’t for Jon’s arm staying firmly in between them, Sam would kiss her.

“And do you, Samwell Tarly, take Gilly Flowers to be your wife?”

Taking the ring from Sammy, Sam answers, “Yes.” Sliding her engagement ring off, he connects the two and slides it back onto her finger.

A shiver of delight goes through her.

“I take the mother of our son to be my wife. Gilly, I promise to love you for richer or poorer, in health or sickness, and I promise to love and cherish you for as long as I live. You- It was easy to be kind to a stranger. I wasn’t surprised by that. I was surprised by how easily it was to fall in love with you and for you to do the same. So far, becoming your husband and having it recognised I’m Sammy’s father and he’s my son is the happiest day of my life. I love you both more than anything or anyone. The only thing that could make this better is if my mother were here to share this with us.”

Wiping away more tears, she resolves, if she isn’t given permission to kiss Sam soon, she’ll do it even with Jon’s arm between them.

“Samwell Tarly and Gilly Flowers have exchanged vows and rings in front of witnesses in this holy place. What they have put together and the life they plan to build with one another and their child, let no mortal tear asunder. The bride and groom may now kiss.”

Jon’s arm is gone and she vaguely hears clapping and ‘awws’, but all she can concentrate on is how good and right her kiss with Sam is and how some part of her never wants it to end.

**Author's Note:**

> Author's Notes: Baby Sam's middle name, William, comes from Dianthus sometimes being called sweet william. 
> 
> Also, the 'pineapple' plait is probably best known as a Dutch braid.


End file.
